Citizens Downgrades PRA Group to Market Perform Amid Profitability Concerns

PRA Group, Inc. is a global financial services company with operations based primarily in the Americas, Europe and Australia. The Company’s primary business is the purchase, collection and management of portfolios of nonperforming loans. The accounts it purchases are primarily the unpaid obligations of individuals owed to credit originators. The Company’s nonperforming loan portfolio comprises Core and Insolvency portfolios. Core operation specializes in purchasing and collecting nonperforming loans, which it purchases since the credit originators have chosen not to pursue, or have been unsuccessful in, collecting the full balance owed. Insolvency operations consist primarily of purchasing and collecting nonperforming loans where the customer is involved in a bankruptcy proceeding, or the equivalent thereof, in certain European countries. It also provides fee-based services on class action claims recoveries in the United States.